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FORMAL STATEMENTS
Following discussion of Agenda item 6, and pending a decision on organization of work relating to discussion of Agenda item 7 on the GPA, delegates began presenting formal statements in Plenary. Delegates who did not have a chance to take the floor due to time constraints during the three days dedicated to formal statements submitted written statements to the Secretariat. The following are highlights of the statements that were delivered in Plenary.
CANADA noted the importance of achieving consensus at Leipzig on a GPA. He suggested that the GPA, in its capacity as a scientific and technical document, was a unique tool with which to prioritize and coordinate actions on PGR at the national and international levels. The US emphasized that all countries were dependent on each other with regard to PGR, and noted that the US Department of Agriculture has supplied more germplasm, unrestricted and at no cost, to the world's scientific community than any other single system. She also highlighted her delegation's view that "the concept of farmers' rights" was "only a means of emphasizing the importance of farmers' practices in promoting conservation and sustainable use of biodiversity."
ITALY, on behalf of the EU, noted that the GPA must be implemented on a scientifically sound basis, and called for more information on activities already underway at global and national levels. INDONESIA noted that promoting education on PGR issues should be given higher priority, and that forest PGR should be recognized. JAPAN called for discussions at Leipzig to be scientifically sound.
MALAYSIA called for the GPA to examine the growth in "propriety rights over PGR" and emphasized the need for institutional mechanisms to deal with the fair and equitable sharing of benefits from the use of PGR. He noted that the international environment within which PGR debates were taking place had changed as a result of the existence of the CBD and the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT). The REPUBLIC OF KOREA stated that free access to PGR should be explored, and that the CBD provided an effective forum for the exchange of information on PGR.
POLAND noted that the GPA and the RSW reflect the understanding that PGR are both a common heritage and a common responsibility. IRAN commended the FAO for its hard work in the area of PGRFA. ETHIOPIA, later supported by the PHILIPPINES, noted that peasant farmers' traditional generosity regarding PGR must be reciprocated through continued free-flow of PGRFA and funding. He called on the Conference to commit to the legal protection of farmers' intellectual innovations, within the framework of the IU.
BRAZIL expressed its desire to adopt an implementable GPA that contains a strong financial commitment, a solid scientific basis and capacity-building for national programmes. INDIA noted that the outcome of the ITCPGR-4 would be a key input to the World Food Summit, especially given agro-biodiversity's importance for world food security. He underscored the importance of bringing together the rights of farmers and plant breeders to meet world food demand in the face of massive population growth.
CHINA called for a GPA that contains both financial and political commitments. The PHILIPPINES noted the GPA's omission of the impact of intellectual property rights (IPR) on PGR. He called for explicit recognition of indigenous and local rights, and linkage of ex situ and in situ approaches to PGR conservation and use. He emphasized the sovereign rights of countries over their genetic resources, and outlined national access legislation that includes elements dealing with prior informed consent, benefit-sharing and technology transfer.
MEXICO outlined its efforts to conserve important PGR through the establishment of gene banks and other research activities. COLOMBIA emphasized that Farmers' Rights (FR), free access regimes, and mechanisms for the preferential transfer of technology to countries that are centers of origin of PGR should be the cornerstone to the Global System of PGR, and that countries should not avoid agreements on financing. KENYA stated that future reports on PGR should include steps for implementation. He emphasized the interdependence of countries with regard to PGRFA and stated that both the benefits and the burden of conservation must be shared, in line with the CBD.
ECUADOR highlighted conclusions and recommendations developed at regional meetings not included in the draft GPA, as well as the contribution of peasant communities to PGR conservation. AUSTRALIA called for finalization of the GPA at this meeting and for a set of practical and feasible measures to support conservation of PGRFA, including policies on access, benefit-sharing and revision of the IU.
Genetic Resources Action International (GRAIN), on behalf of a number of NGOs, reported on their pre-conference weekend meeting on agricultural biodiversity and summarized a statement on FR. They called for farming communities and Indigenous Peoples to have rights over PGR, and for FR to include land rights and the right to participatory agricultural research support.
PORTUGAL stated that it is committed to conservation and sustainable use of PGR, and outlined national activities in this area. BANGLADESH noted that the GPA should utilize a grassroots approach, with FR playing a vital role. He called for the strengthening of national agricultural research systems. PERU highlighted its participation in Leipzig as a signatory of the IU.
ISRAEL called for establishment of a scientific working group to help implement the GPA. CUBA suggested that the GPA should focus on the technical aspects of PGR conservation and use, and on the mobilization of financial resources. He called for the GPA to include a discussion of technology transfer, which he described as a gap in the draft document. SWEDEN highlighted the political nature of the GPA, and called for immediate implementation of its recommendations with concrete projects on the ground, and with financing, without which little action is possible. He stressed that access to gene banks and advice from plant breeders to small farmers would be a concrete way to ensure FR at the national level. He suggested that COP-3 of the CBD be invited to use the GPA as a major input in guiding conservation and sustainable use of PGR.
NEPAL emphasized the importance of acknowledging farmers' contributions to PGR conservation and use. VENEZUELA, supported by BOLIVIA, MOROCCO and IRAQ, stressed the need for financial resources to underwrite the GPA. She praised the RSW, and called for it to be updated on a periodic basis.
BOLIVIA emphasized that food security was intimately linked to conservation and sustainable use of PGR. He called for preferential access to appropriate technology and the sharing of benefits from the use of PGR. ARMENIA highlighted the importance of his country's PGR. FINLAND stated that the GPA was only one part of the Global System and should be seen as an evolving and on-going process. AZERBAIJAN highlighted the significant climatic and genetic diversity of his country and expressed concern about the effects of war on PGR.
CAMEROON, on behalf of the Central and West African States, noted that countries in this region were focusing on strengthening national capacities by establishing gene banks in each subregion, developing legislation, and supporting the work of women in the conservation and sustainable use of PGR. SYRIA highlighted the importance of the RSW. BHUTAN emphasized the need for political will to ensure food security. He pointed to the establishment of a special trust fund for PGR in his country as an expression of political commitment.
ARGENTINA noted that her country was a donor to the World Food Programme and outlined national efforts to develop legislation and technologies for PGR conservation and use. GHANA recalled the CGRFA's 1993 statement that ITCPGR-4 would "transform relevant parts of the UNCED process into a costed GPA" in order to "make the FAO Global System fully operational." She underscored in vitro methods for germplasm conservation and utilization.
The NETHERLANDS noted that the diversity of PGRFA, including forest resources, was essential for sustainable agriculture and forestry. He hailed the FAO, in close cooperation with the CBD, as the appropriate UN organization to address agro-biodiversity issues. He underscored the Netherlands' willingness to contribute financially to the implementation of the GPA, and called on the Secretariat to prepare a work plan as a follow-up to this Conference.
The PEOPLE'S DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF KOREA noted that PGR is the most important raw material for world food security. TURKEY invited all countries to participate in the international conference on in situ biodiversity conservation in Turkey this November. SAMOA underscored its genetic vulnerability as a small island developing State.
BURKINA FASO noted the "combined action of climate and man" in damaging biodiversity and described PGR as essential to food, health and the economy. ROMANIA noted the need for inventories of existing PGR. SRI LANKA emphasized that food security requires valuing PGR, sharing of benefits and financial resources. ZIMBABWE highlighted the need for the GPA to address indigenous knowledge regarding PGR, access to genetic resources, sui generis IPR for FR, and sustainable funding.
GEORGIA noted that the Caucasus region was a center of origin for wheat and grape varieties. FRANCE described national programmes for PGR conservation. ANGOLA highlighted the severe food security problems of the Southern African Development Community (SADC), and pointed to national programmes in PGR. GERMANY noted that the draft GPA was well-balanced, and would be his government's basis for action. The GPA should be in line with Agenda 21.
The PALESTINE LIBERATION ORGANIZATION noted that the eastern Mediterranean is rich in PGR. The International Association of Plant Breeders for the Protection of Plant Varieties (ASSINSEL) described the services it offered in the area of PGR, including training, regeneration of PGR, preselection and evaluation and free access. NIGERIA emphasized the need for country-oriented rather than global programmes, and cost-sharing between the FAO and governments in PGR-related activities. He also noted the importance of forest PGR.
SUDAN requested that, in the area of financing of the GPA, priority be given to least developed countries. KUWAIT underscored the importance of the CGRFA-EX2 and the ITCPGR-4 to the World Food Summit. ZAIRE highlighted her country's substantial genetic diversity and high levels of endemism. SWITZERLAND expressed support for the GPA, and stated that remaining differences over access, financing and implementation, and FR would be resolved.
MOVIMIENTO INDIGENA COLOMBIANA highlighted the importance of the CBD, Agenda 21, and the International Labor Organization Convention 169 to Indigenous Peoples. THIRD WORLD NETWORK, later supported by the RURAL ADVANCEMENT FOUNDATION INTERNATIONAL (RAFI), highlighted the need for new and additional financial resources as well as FR to be included in the GPA. She noted that the majority of farmers in developing countries are women, and equated support for women's rights with support for FR. RAFI called for a legally-binding IU, incorporating FR, to be administered by the FAO and included under the umbrella of the CBD.
The INSTITUTE FOR AGRICULTURE AND TRADE POLICY expressed frustration with the US position on FR, and emphasized that FR are already recognized around the world. VIA CAMPESINA pointed out that this was the first time a farmer's organization was participating in the FAO process on PGR. He called on the Conference to request the FAO to establish a permanent mechanism for participation of farmers and Indigenous Peoples in the implementation of the GPA, a suggestion that was later supported by SWEDEN. Finally, two youth networks, PLAY FAIR EUROPE and A SEED EUROPE, presented a combined statement, noting that the political results of the Conference would impact the destiny of many, and expressing disappointment with a GPA that "consolidates control" over biological resources.